RWBY: Book of Thieves
The Menace in the Machine – The Doctor is In
It had been a long night for the gang, between dodging the patrolling guards and finding a suitable base of operations to set up. By the time they had gotten themselves situated, the starry night sky had been replaced with transparent blue eyes with bits of sunlight shining through. But this was only inside the town; outside, one could hardly tell the difference with the ceaseless thunderclouds obscuring the whole island, churning the seas that surrounded them.
Perched on the rooftop above the wet, cobblestone streets of the small village, Ruby remained hidden in the shadows as she observed the seventh patrolling guard march agitatedly past. That was her third time seeing that exact same guard, both during the first round and the fourth – Ruby was starting to see a pattern in their route. Deciding she had seen enough for now, Ruby silently leapt towards the opposite rooftop and sprinted across the village toward the opposite end, her cape flapping in the wind behind her.
She stopped on the roof of what looked like an old English pub, but the building had long since been condemned; the windows had been completely boarded up and the doors were bolted from the inside – it was the perfect place to lay low. The Rose Thief pawed the roof until her fingers bumped into the hidden trapdoor, pried it open, and dropped inside, allowing the hatch to close with a snap behind her. Ruby unceremoniously landed sprawled over a pile of worn pillows and tattered blankets that the gang had been lucky to procure the previous night, then quickly rolled over and bounced back up to her feet. The red-hooded thief brushed herself off, coughing from the amount of dust that still lingered, and looked around at her team scattered throughout the base.
She could see Weiss hunched over at bar table, frustration apparent on her face as she fruitlessly tried to make her smartphone do anything. Weiss was a computer genius who could work miracles with her laptop, but her phone didn't nearly have the amount of processing power she needed, especially when she couldn't risk wifi connectivity with Watts looming over them. Blake was sitting on the floor nearby unpacking their supply bag and doing a quick inventory check. The Faunus had always been left in charge of their tools since Ruby was too scatterbrained to remember everything, Yang more often than not broke a lot of the things they needed, and Weiss just outright refused. Blake was currently checking their weapons, which included Crescent Rose, Gambol Shroud, Weiss's rapier named Myrtenaster, and a pair of sawed-off shotguns Yang called Ember Celica. And speaking of whom, Ruby noticed, the muscle of their team was currently bench pressing three of the old wooden tabled stacked on top of each other with minimal effort. Ruby suspected that Yang was only doing it to impress Blake; a suspicion she confirmed when Yang flashed a flirtatious smile and Blake rolled her eyes playfully.
Ruby had just sat down on the stool when Weiss slapped her hands on the bar with a frustrated growl, making the red-hooded thief jump. Their computer operator spun around in her seat and groaned, "Ugh, this is pointless. My phone doesn't nearly have the power we need, and I can't get another laptop because Watts will just hack it again and we'll be right back where we started."
"What's the big deal, anyway?" asked Yang carelessly.
"The big deal is that Dr. Watts has this entire island loaded with cameras, electronic doors, wireless communication, and not to mention all those weird gadgets he's outfitted his men with," Weiss explained exasperatedly, rubbing her throbbing forehead. "Without a computer, I won't be able to hack into any of those things. And even if I did have one, Watt's will probably just pick up on it right away and bring his entire army down on top of us."
"Then why don't we steal it from him?" said Blake, drawing all eyes on her. "His controls, I mean. Watts is a computer genius, so he's obviously sending orders from a computer of his own. But if he was able to hack into Weiss's laptop, then he would have had to do it through the wireless connection. And that means he must have something that transmitting wireless signals throughout the island, right?"
"Yeah…yeah, you're right," Weiss said slowly. She turned around in her seat once more, swiping the scene on her smartphone. "If Watts is controlling everything from a computer, then he would need some kind of a router where he can forward all his data. And since it very unlikely that Watts would want anyone to see so much as his wallpaper, he's likely established his own private network that's connected to the whole island. The thing is, it would need to be set somewhere where it can send a large enough signal that it can reach everywhere at once, and there's only one place on the whole island where he could do it from…."
Weiss flipped around to Ruby practically shoved her smartphone in her leader's face. On the screen was one of the reconnaissance photo Ruby had taken of the area after they found their base. Ruby hadn't thought much about the building at first since it was just an abandoned coffee shop, but she couldn't help noticing the large radio tower perched on the roof and snapped a picture on a hunch. Looks like her hunch had panned out.
"Why would an old café have a radio tower unless it was being used for something?" said Weiss smugly. "Not to mention the store looks old while the tower itself seems brand new. Watts has to be hiding his router somewhere inside. I'll head on over and see if I can't piggyback onto it. If we're both sending the same signal, them we'll be practically invisible inside Watt's network – maybe we can even intercept his communications and keep track of his actions. The more we know what's going on, the better."
"You shouldn't go alone," said Ruby firmly. "Take Yang with you in case things get too hairy."
"Ironic choice of words, considering the mess we're working with," said Weiss, gesturing to the blonde with her chin.
"Aw, you're just jealous 'cause of my luscious mane," said Yang teasingly, running one hand through her giant mass of golden locks while still holding up the tables with the other.
"And what can Ruby and I do?" Blake asked before the white-and-yellow pair could get into another heated argument. "You can't expect us to just sit around and wait, can you?"
"No, I actually have another job, I want you both to do," said Weiss, swiping her phone again. "When one of the guards was passing by the hideout, I was able to overhear his conversation on the radio. Apparently, Dr. Watts is coming down from his airship and is on his way to greet some 'special guests'. Ten-to-one says that these 'special guests' might be another member of the Grimm. Since you both specialize in stealth and deception, I need you two to tail Watts and find out any information about him that might help benefit us in the final heist. And if you can find out who these guests are, that would help. Once we have a hack-proofed computer and a better understanding of operation, those pages of the Book of Thieves are as good as ours."
"Then what are we doing sitting around here?" Ruby said impatiently. "Let's move out!"
Ruby and Blake deftly leaped across the rooftops, flying over the heads of the patrolling guards without them being any the wiser; the Rose Thief used the tops of signs and lampposts to reach the opposite side while the Cat Faunus used her natural skills to bound over and land on all-fours. They were making their way toward the center of the village where the storm generating airship floated high above, casting a long shadow in the rays of the sun. Ruby, whose attention was focused on the airship and the possibility that it might contain the missing pages, let out a surprised yelp when Blake suddenly pulled her back by the cape and slapped her palm to keep the Rose Thief silent. A couple of the guards below looked around for the source of the noise, but gave up when they couldn't find anything.
Blake waited a few seconds to make sure the guards weren't paying attention before she removed her hand from Ruby's mouth. The Rose Thief let out a dramatic gasp, turned to the Faunus to say something, when Blake pressed a finger to her lips as a gesture of silence. She then pointed off to the side. Ruby crawled up to the ledge on her hands and knees and finally understood why Blake was acting so cautious.
They had found themselves on the edge of what used to be the town square, but now looked like it had been converted to a security camp. Fifteen-foot-high chain link fences topped with barbed wire surrounded blocked off the square from all sides, every side and corner guarded by stationary security equipped with bulletproof vests and heavy ordnance. Inside the fences, Ruby could make out several dozen similarly armed men patrolling in a pattern that she couldn't make out from her position. And to top it all off, there spotlights outfitted with automatic turrets that likely shot down anyone trying to get into the square from anywhere other than the main road. All in all, Ruby did not like her chances of trying to get in there.
"Holy cats, look at this!" Ruby hissed. "It's like that time we snuck into that Atlesian military base."
"Only Weiss can't give us the access codes so we can walk in," Blake mumbled, her eyes roaming the square. "Watts is very thorough about keeping this area guarded. There are men with a visual radius that can watch from all directions. The fence is just far enough from the rooftops that we would get caught in the barbed wiring if we tried to jump them. Automated turrets with searchlights so that we can't sneak around under the cover of night. And I'm willing to bet Watts was paranoid enough to equip them with motion detection. And even if we do make it inside the fence, there are a whole lot of guards with guns and no places to take cover. No matter how we do it, we're screwed if we try to get into Watt's ship through there."
"Can't you just disguise yourself as a guard and sneak us in," Ruby suggested.
"Ruby, take a look at them," said Blake with a blank expression, gesturing to the guards. "All of them are giant, muscular men with ridiculous amounts of facial hair – seriously, what is it with Englishmen and mustache's? No disguise will be able to fool them. And no – we are not doing Operation: Anchovy again," Blake cut Ruby off as she opened her mouth.
"Fine," Ruby grumbled. "But this is the only known way of getting into Watt's ship. How do we - ?"
"Hold that thought; look over there," Blake interjected.
The Cat Faunus gestured to the main gates as the fences were pulled aside and a group of five people marched out onto the main road. Ruby and Blake crouched low as they moved across the roof and peeked cautiously over the ledge down into the street. Right away, the first person Ruby sees is Dr. Arthur Watts with his thick mustache and his casual demeanor as he walks along the cobblestone with his hands folded behind his back as if he were taking a delightful stroll. It had been over a decade since Ruby had last laid eyes on him, but she could never forget the look of mirth as he stood over her mother's corpse, tearing apart the Book of Thieves in a fit of laughter.
Ruby was almost tempted to jump down and rip that dumb mustache off his face, which was why she was so fortunate enough to have Blake nearby to hold her down.
"Easy there, red," Blake said soothingly in Ruby's ear, holding her by the shoulders to keep her in place. "We'll get our chance. You just have to be patient."
"I know…," said Ruby, taking a deep, calming breath. "I know…gotta be patient…. Think things through before I go screwing everything up."
"Maybe not everything, but a good amount," said Blake teasingly. "The good thing is, we've spotted Watts. And even better, look at who he's with."
Ruby spared another look in Watts direction before she realized what Blake was getting at. The four soldiers who were guarding the disgraced scientists were normal sized compared to the brutish security wandering the town. All of them were wearing sleek, futuristic-looking armor made of some type of white alloy and carrying laser rifles as opposed to the live ammunition used by the regular guards. But the most important part was that armored guards wearing helmets with wide visors that covered their faces from view. Truth be told, they reminded Ruby of those robot soldiers in Atlas….
"Those must be Watt's personal bodyguards," said Blake, carefully watching the doctor pace down the street in the direction of the town entrance. "Of course he has to make sure that his men have the best equipment to keep himself safe. But that might be a good thing in this situation."
"They're all wearing helmets," Ruby added. "Even if you were standing right in front of them, I bet you wouldn't be able to see who was behind it. If we got one of those uniforms, we might be able tail Watts anywhere he goes. Aaaand I bet being on Watts's special forces can get you a lot of security clearance to places that normal guards aren't allowed to go. Just the kind of thing we need for the big heist."
"First we need to figure out how to get to one of them," Blake mutters to her partner as Watts turns the corner. "Any ideas."
Ruby hums to herself, rubbing her chin animatedly…and then a grin stretched across her lips.
Watts made an indignant noise as he checked the time on his personalized smartphone before pocketing it, his mustache twitching as they passed another pair of brutish henchmen. They were big and beefy, which was part of the reason why he hired them, but they were so easily distracted and constantly tripping over themselves to the point where it seemed like a cartoonish gag. Watts could have hired better men, certainly, but it was better to cut costs for the sake of his experiments; these buffoons were too stupid to realize that they were being underpaid, anyway.
Watts checked his phone again and scoffed.
"The nerve of them showing up so late in the day," said Dr. Watts irritably. "Don't they know I'm a busy man? If I am going to the trouble of inviting them, they should at least have the common courtesy to be punctual."
"Well, it's not exactly easy to get to the island," one of the guards said. "What with the storm you – "
"I hope you don't let your tongue slip in front of our guests, minion," Dr. Watts said sharply. "Otherwise, I may feel the need to cut it out of that empty skull of yours. Understand?"
"Y-yes, sir," the guard stuttered fearfully.
"Honestly, it's so hard to find good help these days," said Dr. Watts, shaking his head with an agitated sigh. "Someone be sure to inform Professor Taupe in Laboratory 6 that I might be running late this evening. God knows how long it will take to play tour guide with these – "
Whatever he was going to say next was cut off when they heard a loud crash coming from the alleyway on their left. Dr. Watts came to an immediate stop; his guards quickly formed up into a diamond pattern around the scientist with their arms trained on the alleyway. Watts's eyes narrowed suspiciously as he gestured to the bodyguard in front and to the left of him with his chin.
"You two check out that noise," Dr. Watts commanded. "And be thorough. Somehow, I get a feeling our little intruders might be up to something."
The two bodyguards nodded in acknowledgement and cautiously tread down the alley while the remaining two guards took up positions in front and behind the doctor. Dr. Watts observed the guards waving their laser rifles slowly around, waiting to pull the trigger at the first sign of movement (if they actually managed to hit something, he wasn't going to complain). After they had down a sweep of the lane, one of the guards gestured to something off to the side and both of them disappeared around the corner.
Watts and his remaining bodyguards stood waiting for one minute…then two minutes…and by the time five minutes had passed, Watts was starting to lose his patience and suspect that something wasn't right. The disgraced scientist started to reach inside his coat for something when the missing guards suddenly appeared around the corner again, jogging back to join the rest of them. The two guards with Watts visibly relaxed when seeing them, but the doctor kept his hand inside his coat with a distrustful look in his eyes.
"Nothing to report, sir," One of the guards declared. "All we could find were a couple of rubbish bins knocked over. We think it might have been a cat."
"Or it could have been a monkey," the second guard suggested.
"You idiot, why would it be a monkey?"
"Well, we're in the middle of an island, so it could've – "
"Quiet," Dr. Watts hissed, leering at them. "You two, take off your helmets." The two guards looked at each other, mounting confusion apparent, then looked back at the doctor. "That wasn't a request. Take them off. Now!"
Th guards hesitated at first, but nonetheless reaching for their helmets and pulled them off slowly. When the headgear finally came off, Watts stared into the faces of…a pair of very confused-looking Englishman. The disgraced scientist let out a relieved sigh, removing his hand from his coat.
"Just had to be sure," Dr. Watts explained to his befuddled guards. "These intruders have an operative skilled in the art of deception. Just wanted to make sure neither of you had been replaced why you were away. Now, come along," he said, checking his phone again. "Can't been later than we already are."
The guards replaced their helmets and stepped in line with the former scientist as they marched down the street…unaware of Ruby popping her head out of the alleyway on the opposite side. The Rose Thief grinned.
"The key to being a great thief is misdirection," Ruby said quietly, speaking over her shoulder. "Pretty clever, don't you think?"
Her response was a whole lot of muffled shouting and the sound of someone thrashing around on the ground. The girl in the red hood turned back around, looking down at the bound and gagged Englishman rolling around on the cobblestone in nothing but his underclothes. Ruby poked her head around the corner again and kept an eye on the armored guard stepping behind Dr. Watts, hoping he doesn't notice the few strands of black hair poking out from under the helmet.
Ruby was honestly relieved that her plan had worked. The Rose Thief had knocked over the trash can to draw the two guards around, and while everyone was watching that direction, Blake had snuck up on the guard standing behind Watts and pulled him into the shadows. It had been very risky considering they had done the deed only a few feet away from Watts and he could have turned around at any moment to catch them, so they we playing on the hope that he would be too focused on the disturbance to notice anything. It all paid off in the end and Blake had successfully infiltrated their ranks. Now all they needed to do was keep the good doctor was figuring them out.
After stuffing the poor Englishman into a trash can, Ruby climbed back up to the rooftops and continued to pursue the group from higher ground. As she crouched behind the low ledges of the roofs, Ruby stifled the urge to laugh out loud by the way Blake was awkwardly shuffling behind Watts. The armor had obviously been a little big on Blake given that the guard they stole it from had been slightly taller and obviously more built. Blake looked like she was doing something of a clumsy jig trying to keep her armored pants up, but, thankfully, Dr. Watts didn't seem to notice anything unusual as his attention was focused solely on his phone. They goodness they lived in a generation where everyone was completely unaware of the world around them, Ruby thought.
She followed them for close to ten minutes as they walked through the town at a leisurely pace, which Ruby thought was odd considering how Watts was complaining about punctuality earlier. Ruby spent the time bounding between rooftops, but there was a tense moment when one of the regular security guards caught a glimpse of her cape at the last second and she had to take shelter in the alleys until the guard thought they were imagining things. From there, she continued to pursue the party on foot by carefully ducking between streets and hiding behind large objects like boxes and street carts; she even used a brutish guard as cover when Watts glanced her way, which was a terrible experience as the guy smelled like he hadn't bathed in a week.
Ruby ducked around the corner when Watts's group finally made it to the town entrance, which was blocked off by a gigantic steel door ("Overcompensating much?" Ruby muttered sarcastically.) The gate was flanked by two brutish guards with two more perched on lookout towers on either side, and Ruby suspected there was at least two more on the other side. Now she understood why Weiss insisted on taking the sewer. One of the guards in the lookout tower turned when Watts approached the gate, making a couple of hand gestures that Ruby couldn't make out.
"Well, what are you waiting for?" said Watts impatiently. "Let them in already."
The lookout guard looked like he had been slapped in the face, quickly spinning around and gesturing to someone on the other side of the fence. A loud clang sounded over the rumbling of the overhead clouds, the cringing noise of metal scraping against stone, and then the gate slowly parted sideways down the middle. Ruby jabbed her fingers into her ears to block out the irritating noise and leaned in closer for a better view of Watt's guests. She saw the outlines of two people standing on the other side, waiting until the gates were open wide enough for them to walk inside. The pair quickly paced inside, trying to escape the stormy weather behind them, and started shaking their clothes free of the excess water. When the guests finally stood up straight and presented themselves, Ruby's jaw dropped in disbelief.
"Oh crap, not her," she said.
"Oh crap, not her," Blake hissed, mirroring Ruby's expression under the helmet.
"Oh crap, not her," Watts muttered disgustedly.
Winter Schnee's all too familiar scowl leered up at Watts, possibly having overheard his comment, mopping her face with a handkerchief she pulled out of her pocket. Somehow, Ruby didn't feel all too surprised that Winter had managed to follow them all the way out to an island in the middle of nowhere, regardless of the raging storm outside. Her companion, on the other hand, was someone that Ruby had never seen before. He didn't exactly look like a model police office by the way he was shaking his head like a wet dog or slapping the excess water out of his ears. More than that, it was a surprise that Winter even worked with anyone, especially someone who looked like they could be younger than Ruby herself. She needed to ask Weiss about him later.
Ruby looked back at Watts, who was whispering something to his bodyguards; Blake spared a brief glance in her direction and nodded, silently communicating that she would explain later.
"Welcome, welcome, my friends, to Gale Island," Dr. Watts greeted Winter and her partner jovially, arms waving exaggeratedly. "I am Dr. Arthur Watts, proud owner of this island. I hope the trip over wasn't too difficult."
"I'm pretty sure I lost a week's worth of lunch on the ship," Oscar groaned. Winter elbowed him sharply in the shoulder, gesturing the boy to stand up straight. "Ow! Was that necessary?"
"Dr. Watts, I am Inspector Winter Schnee," said Winter properly, her back straight and her shoulder squared. "And this is my partner, Oscar Pines."
"Partner?" Ruby whispered to herself. "Since when does Winter do partners?"
"We were sent by INTERPOL regarding a lead against an international thief, Ruby Rose," Winter continued. "According to our caller, she has been suspected to be somewhere on this island. Is that correct?"
"Yes, I was the one that called you," said Dr. Watts, turning on his heel and gesturing them to follow. "Let's walk and talk. I can explain everything while giving you a tour of the town."
The former scientist marched off down the street, brushing past Blake, who had paused for a moment to give the doctor a bit of space before joining the other bodyguards in following him. Winter and Oscar, both still soaking wet and without being offered a towel, shared a brief glance before they went along with the doctor. As they approached her alleyway, Ruby climbed a nearby gutter pipe and practically threw herself over the ledge, lying flat against the roof and praying that Winter hadn't noticed the quick flash of her red cape. It was one thing to tail Watts and his goons – they didn't know what to expect – but Winter Schnee was practically an expert on the Rose Gang and could sniff out even the slightest trace of suspicious activity. Ruby held her breath as they walked by and didn't release it until they were a good enough distance away.
"Of all the people in the world, why did it have to be Winter?" Ruby muttered softly. She flipped around on her stomach and slowly peeked over the ledge at the group's retreating backside. "This job just got a whole lot harder. I really hope she doesn't notice Blake…."
Speaking of whom, the feline Faunus was practically sweating a waterfall underneath her helmet. Winter "The Ice Queen" Schnee was only two feet in front of her and was searching the environment with that critical gaze that had undone a number of their operations in the past. Blake was starting to regret stealing this uniform. If she tried to make a break for it, not only would Watts know something was up, but Winter would slap the cuffs on her before she even took five steps. There had to be a way out of this. There had –
"Isn't it kinda weird how there's a huge storm outside this town, but not a single drop in it?" Oscar spoke up, nearly making Blake jump out of her skin.
"Hmm, you're right," Winter hummed thoughtfully as she stared up at the clear sky. "How do you explain that, Doctor?"
"Yes, well, I suppose the question is to be expected," Dr. Watts grumbled, looking like he was not fond of explaining the phenomenon. "Well, I am a scientist after all, and Gale Island is a naturally stormy place. I could bear to do my research with all that ruckus, so I decided to do something about it. See my airship high above the town?" He pointed to it. "The machine on board is what's keeping the storms away."
"More like causing it," Blake muttered under her breath. For a brief second, Winter looked over her shoulder back at Blake like she had heard her, making the cat Faunus tense up. Thankfully, she turned back around, seemingly not noticing anything.
"I see," said Winter coolly. "As interesting as that is, perhaps we should focus on the matter at hand. The Rose Gang. You believe they are on this island. Do you think they are looking for anything specific? Any reason why you think they would go through all the trouble of traveling through a hurricane and sneaking into town."
"Well, I am a very wealthy and powerful man, if owning an island is any proof," said Dr. Watts, chuckling at his own wit. "They could be after anything, really."
Winter frowned and shared a look with Oscar; neither of them were buying it. Winter knew that it was no coincidence that Ruby Rose would break into her office back in America to steal her own file and suddenly appear less than a week later within the general vicinity as one of the people suspected to be involvement in her mother's murder. She had already brought Oscar up to speed on all her research, so he could automatically tell that Watts was withholding information.
"Sooo…how did you figure out that Ruby Rose is here?" Oscar asked candidly. "Most people don't know they're around until they've already been robbed."
"Well, I am certainly not 'most people'," Dr. Watts sniffed condescendingly. "If you must know, I caught their little hacker trying to sneak their way into my personal data system. Now, a man of my brilliance easily caught on to their schemes right away, and attempted to return the favor by hacking back into their system. Unfortunately, they caught wind of it and promptly destroyed their computer before I could properly track it. A shame, really, but it just goes to show the difference in our level of skill and intellect."
"Is that son of a bitch actually gloating? It wasn't even that good." An irritable voice growled in Ruby's ear.
"Weiss!" Ruby hissed very loudly in surprise. She flattened herself against the roof when she thought Oscar might have heard her, tapping the communicator in her ear as she spoke quietly. "Weiss, what are you doing? I thought this line wasn't secure."
"It is now," said Weiss; Ruby could practically hear her cocky grin. "I've successfully integrated myself into Watts's network, and even found myself a new laptop in the process – talk about a win-win. Now we can communicate without interference and even poke around some places that the doctor wouldn't want us to. Of course, we ran into a little trouble along the way." At precisely that moment, Ruby heard a crash in the background and Weiss screamed, "Will you stop throwing henchmen into the computer's Xiao-Long!"
"My bad!" Ruby heard her sister distantly apologize.
"Speaking of sisters, do you know who's on the island right now?" said Ruby.
"I can see her through the street cameras," said Weiss. "This operation has become exceedingly more difficult…but we also may be able to turn this into an advantage against Watts if we play our cards right…."
"So you're telling me you managed to reverse hack the Rose Gang's hacker?" said Winter with a hint of skepticism. "You know their hacker is the infamous Snowpea, correct? I'm sure a former military scientist like yourself must have heard of her."
"Only by reputation," said Dr. Watts, waving his hand dismissively. "A gray hat hacker responsible for leaking information into the general public that essentially destroyed dozens of major companies…including your father's company, if I am to assume that your last name has any relation to the Schnee Company." He looked over his shoulder with a calculative look, taking in Winter's impassive expression. "You must have some personal stake in wanting to see the Snowpea arrested for destroying your family's legacy, do you not?"
"It wasn't my legacy," said Winter in a strained voice as if she was trying to hold back her real feelings. "I never had any personal interest in running my father's empire. I joined the police force the moment I graduated and never looked back. I have no qualms with the Snowpea for exposing my father's crimes."
"Then perhaps you want to thank them before you slap the cuffs on," said Dr. Watts amusingly. "Now, how about I show you where you'll be staying. It's not exactly a five-star hotel, but I think it will do nicely."
"I think that's about enough info we're gonna get out of this recon," Ruby muttered, tapping her comms. "Weiss got her computer set up and we got a hold of a uniform from Watts's personal guard."
"That'll make it easier to move around, at least," said Weiss.
"We still have one problem," Blake's said over the comms. She was speaking in a very low voice, likely trying to keep Winter and Watts from overhearing. "How am I going to get back to the hideout? I can't run off without these three knowing what's up. I'll be caught right away."
"We need some kind of distraction to get Watts to send his guards away," said Ruby.
"I'm already on it," said Weiss smugly. Over their commlink, Ruby could hear the rapid tapping of keys along with Weiss's concentrated muttering. "Accessing infostructure…searching for the most heavily guarded area…hmm, Laboratory 6 looks promising…. Rerouting system mainframe…activating alarms…aaaaand – voila!"
Right away, a jarring alarm screeched across the town, making Ruby, Watts, Winter, Oscar, and the guards jump. The bodyguards swiveled around with their guns, not knowing where to shoot, while Winter pulled out her saber and Oscar withdrew what looked like a customized expandable baton from his belt. Dr. Watts, meanwhile, looked flustered as he grappled with his coat trying to whip out his phone; Ruby could actually see his mustache bristling as his finger swiped furiously across the screen.
"What's that alarm?" Winter questioned the doctor.
"It's…," Dr. Watts said hesitantly. "Security is reporting a break-in at Laboratory 6. How on Earth did they even find it…."
"It must be Ruby Rose," Oscar suggested. "We should go check it out."
"NO!" Dr. Watts shouted sharply. Oscar yelped and shuffled back a couple feet, taking by the doctor's sudden outburst. The doctor quickly composed himself and said, "I mean, no, you can't go in there. That's a private facility for authorized staff members only. Can't have either of you running amok in there – too much important work in there."
"All the more reason to suspect that the Rose Gang has there," said Winter, narrowing her eyes on the doctor suspiciously. "We were brought in to detain those thieves, so if you don't mind – "
"But I do mind," Dr. Watts all but growled at her. "Unless you have a warrant, you will not set a single foot anywhere that you don't belong. My personal guards will see to the matter." He directed his attention to the armored goons who were staring at the doctor cluelessly. "Well? What the bloody hell are you waiting for, an invitation? Go check it out before I fire the lot of you!"
The bodyguards scrambled frantically, a couple running into each other, before they ran down the length of the street, leaving Watts huffing irritably with Winter and Oscar, both of whom replaced their weapons with equally distrustful looks. Ruby observed the scene from above, letting out a relieved sigh as she watched Blake disappear around the corner with the other guards.
"Nice work, Weiss," Blake chirped over the comms. "I'll break off from the rest of these goons as soon as I'm in the clear."
"That's good, but did you notice the way Watts reacted when the alarm went off," said Ruby. "He looked really bent out of shape when he thought this…'laboratory 6' was being broken into. He wouldn't even let Winter check it out, even though he thought it would be us."
"Watts is definitely hiding something in that lab," said Weiss. "Something he doesn't want the police finding out about. We'll have to investigate later. Everyone should head back to the hideout so we can compare notes."
As the communicator clicked off and Ruby stood up from her hiding spot, she spared one last glance at the trio of Watts, Winter, and her new partner before she disappeared with a flick of her cape.
While not as action-filled as the rest of the chapters, the reconnaissance mission is always a valuable quest for the future success as any job. With a little bit of information as well as a way to sneak into some of the more secure places in Watts's operation, the Rose Gang will have a better chance at recovering the pages of the Book of Thieves. But for those who are looking for a little more fight, you won't be disappointed when we see how the other half of the team fared in the next chapter.